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Monthly Archives: July 2012

Activist Cameron Whitten has reached an agreement with City Council to end his hunger strike. Come out to City Hall tomorrow (Thursday) at 10am and bring an empty stomach for a special event! Read the the full news here:

Commemorating the birthday of social critic and award-winning author Aldous Huxley, Portland activist Cameron Whitten has declared a determined end date for his Hunger Strike at City Hall. The 24/7 camping demonstration was launched on June 2nd, and has been fairly reminiscent of last Fall’s Occupation of Downtown Public Squares. After 55 Days, Whitten’s weight has dropped to 159 of an initial 193.7 pounds: shedding 34.7 pounds in total…

Whitten, a former Mayoral Candidate, student, and active volunteer, said he felt the exponentially growing housing crisis was not receiving enough visibility, “There are less safe places for Portlanders to sleep, which contributes to crime, mental health issues, lower quality of living, and death.” The statistics of homelessness in Multnomah County are staggering.

2,727 people are experiencing homelessness
1,928 are sleeping in transitional housing
35% are unsheltered families with children
46% are people of color
12% are U.S. military veterans
Total 4,655 people as identified by the Portland/Multnomah County “Point-In Time Study,” 2011

Whitten notes a number of groundbreaking victories for Housing Justice have occurred over the past 55 Days:

…Whitten is planning an open Press Conference to declare his victory, on the steps of City Hall. Thursday, July 26th at 10AM, supporters will be able to observe him scarf down his first item of solid food in the past 55 Days. He hasn’t clued anyone in on what it will be, but you can be sure it will be vegan.

This was just sent our way: David Love has made a documentary on last Friday’s Rally For Housing Justice! The news today is that City Hall and Cameron Whitten have come to an agreement on some housing issues to end Whitten’s hunger strike tomorrow. An official announcement will be made at 10am, Thursday, July 26th at City Hall.

Join us for a multi-city traveling workshop being hosted by the City of Portland (Mon, July 23, 5pm – 7pm). That’s right! Your tax dollars help us to put on this workshop, by having it take place on the Plaza of City Hall in lovely downtown Portland. Traveling facilitators will conduct role playing and discussions around issues relating to arrests as they are happening, custody wisdom, and post-arrest support. Contact Jimmy at: opdxradio@gmail.com, but be warned, he doesn’t spend much time at the computer, so getting back to you might be tricky. Better yet, just show up and warm us with your presence. This, like Mike says, “is gonna happen”!

Occupy Portland’s own Mike BlueHair is in the process of creating a documentary on the recent NATO protest in Chicago and has set up a WePay to help with production costs. Check out his trailer for the film:

Oh goodness, lots going on this Friday! A list of some of the day’s happenings:

It’s Bank Action Day! This week’s bank action will be occurring at Chase Bank at 4700 SE Woodstock Blvd. The action will start at Noon and end at 4pm to give people a chance to make it to the EPIC Housing Justice Rally. Learn more here.

PDX Bike Swarm will be gearing up early for the Rally. At 2:30pm ride your bike down to Holladay Park as Bike Swarm prepares a ride in solidarity for housing justice before the Rally begins at Terry Schrunk Plaza.

Friday, July 20th will be the 50th day anniversary of Cameron Whitten‘s hunger strike for housing justice at City Hall. The site of the rally has moved from City Hall to directly across the street, to Terry Schrunk Plaza. The rally will begin at 4:30pm. A reminder for what Whitten is asking City Council to consider:

1. For City Commissioner Dan Saltzman to withdraw the fines on the co-owners of the Right 2 Dream Too Rest Area, and to seek a peaceful resolution for this cost-free solution to homelessness for the remainder of the lease agreement.

2. Creation of a task force composed of concerned citizens and non-profit organizations to find better ways to provide basic city services to those without.

3. Initiation of a dialogue between city officials and representatives of the houseless community to find an alternative to the current ban on camping in the city.

4. Location of a city site capable of providing shelter and basic services for 300 persons.

Confirmed speakers include Ahjamu Umi, Kate Lore, Jefferson Smith, Ibrahim Mubarak, Woody Broadnax, Charlie Hales, Brandi Tuck, Felecia Campbell, Israel Bayer, and Phiamma Elias. At 5:30pm there are plans to link arms around City Hall and sing a song of unity. Find out more and RSVP on the Facebook Event Page.

Report back from the People’s Summit in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. Videos, pictures, stories, lessons, and inspiration from the international convergence of people’s movements. 30,000 activists, organizers, and organizations gathered to fight back against the UN Conference on Sustainable Development (Rio+20) and to engage in international movement building. Rio+20 was a failure, but the...Read More

In Solidarity with Native Peoples of this Land and our Earth Contact: Max Wilbert, 206-395-6251, max_dgr@riseup.net Several clans of the Wetsu’wet’en First Nation have blockaded the pathway of a proposed pipeline (actually 5 pipelines including The Northern Gateway) from the Tar Sands and tracking out to the BC coast, and have asked for activists to attend...Read More

Action Alert! Sister Annette Steel, an elderly African American active with Occupy Northeast the Black Working Group, is facing an eviction trial today at 3:30pm at the Multnomah County Court House, Rm 528. Her ex parte hearing this morning failed to move the judge to merge her claim (against the banksters who are fraudulently...Read More